Acres to dredge marina at cost of $200,000

A $200,000 dredging project will deepen the marina in Henlopen Acres.

The town commissioners unanimously agreed to a proposal to remove 4,000 cubic yards of silt.

Contractor Precision Marine has estimated the cost of the project at $198,000.

The town last dredged its marina in 2003; town officials say so much sediment has built up, boats have difficulty getting in and out of the marina.

Contractor Precision Marine is already dredging in neighboring North Shores.

Rob Whitford of Precision Marine told the commissioners at their May 25 meeting that by doing the project now, the town can split the $20,000 mobilization costs with North Shores, saving the Acres $10,000.

“We looked at several different areas of the marina," Whitford said, noting the old boat ramp was filling in and a spit starting to form at the mouth of the marina.

After examining the marina, Precision Marine came up with two options: an 18-inch cut that would remove 3,000 cubic yards of silt, and a 2-foot cut that would remove 4,000 cubic yards.

Whitford said the dredging would use Geotube technology to store the sediment as it is being removed. Material is pumped through tubes directly into the Geotube, which resembles a beached whale. The bags filter the sludge and sediment while slowly draining clean water back out into the marina. Once the bags are full, Whitford said, the material inside would be applied on farmland as fertilizer.

Whitford said three to four bags would be needed to dredge the marina. He said in his best guess, the dredging would provide the town with an eight-to-10-year fix. The project is estimated to take six to seven months, with work starting in late November. Dredging would take place in the morning and the afternoon, Whitford said, because of the way the tides shift.

Town Manager Tom Roth said the town already set aside $40,000 in the marina budget for future dredging and has enough remaining reserves to cover costs.

Commissioner David Hill, town treasurer, said, “We have to find the money. We have sufficient capital reserves to do this project.”

The dredging project would be one of two significant capital improvement projects the town plans to undertake in the 2012-13 budget year. The second is the final stage of the town’s road resurfacing project.

The commissioners agreed removing 4,000 cubic yards would give the town the best bang for its buck.

Commissioner John Staffier said, “My thinking would be, whatever the conditions are, you ought to get a greater amount of time if you do the deeper dredging.”